29 March 2018 Volume 21 Number 3

PRINCIPAL

News from the Principal

Our students have experienced a busy end to term with assessment in most subjects. Hopefully most of our students have worked steadily over the term and were well prepared for the demands of the final few weeks. As we reach the end of term it is timely to reflect upon the successes and challenges of the last 10 weeks. I trust that our students have enjoyed school to date and have taken every opportunity to be involved in the extra curricula life of the school.

School Priorities

The school has five key improvement priorities in 2018.

1. Systematic Curriculum Development and Delivery – this represents a significant body of work with the required completion of the P-10 Australian Curriculum and the need to develop units of work as assessment for the new Senior Assessment and Tertiary Entrance system which is being implemented in 2019 in Year 11.
2. Writing for Learning – continuing the focus from recent years as our writing outcomes, as measured by NAPLAN and the QCS Writing Task, lag behind the other performance areas.
3. Twenty First Century Skills – developing a greater understanding of the 21st Century Skills as defined by the Queensland Curriculum Assessment Authority. These skills – Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Communication, Collaboration and Teamwork, Personal and Social Skills, Information and Communication Technologies underpin the new Senior Curriculum.
4. Inclusive Classrooms – developing strategies around differentiated pedagogy to ensure that all students can access the curriculum.

Reporting and Parent Interviews

Term 1 Interim Reports will be sent by email on Thursday 29 March. Electronic communication is the school’s preferred means of communication. Please ensure that your email address is current for school records.

In respect to the Term 1 Interim Reports, some subject areas, particularly in the Senior School, will be based on limited or no summative assessment. Nonetheless it is important that academic progress be reported to parents/carers in a timely fashion. If issues around performance and application can be addressed early enough, students will have an increased likelihood of enjoying success over the rest of the semester.

Term 1 data is particularly important in identifying students who are experiencing difficulty in their course selection in the Senior School.

Parent Interviews will be held on Thursday 19 April, 3.30-7.30pm and Monday 23 April, 3.30-7.00pm.

Jinai Joshi International Visit

Our first international study tour for 2018 has been a great success. Over the last two weeks we have hosted a group from Jinai Joshi in Japan. Whilst our visitors have had a focus on Science in their time at Centenary SHS, the tour has also provided opportunities for our students to develop cultural understandings. I thank the members of our community who have worked to ensure the success of the tour.

P&C News

I take this opportunity to thank the parents/carers who work tirelessly to support and improve our school through the P&C. This support is invaluable and I encourage all parents/carers to consider what contribution they can make to the school.

Congratulations to the 2017 Executive who have been re-elected as office bearers for the 2018 school year.

David Harris: President
Roger Bacon: Vice President
Susan Harris: Secretary
Jennifer Peters: Treasurer

I urge parents/carers to play an active role in the school through P&C involvement.

Road Safety

Please be conscious of road rules and student safety in the streets adjoining the school, e.g. round a bouts are not drop off zones. In particular, please use the allocated parking areas adjacent to the school. Unless students are injured they should not require dropping off in the school grounds.

Uniform

Centenary SHS is proud of its uniform. Unfortunately as the term has progressed our uniform presentation has declined. It is important that we commence the new term adhering to our standards. To this end please re-familiarise yourself with the uniform expectations of the school. The student diaries provide detailed information.

In particular students should be wearing navy blue socks, with no logos, with their formal uniform. These socks can be purchased from the uniform shop.

Student Achievement

Congratulations to all our students who have achieved a level of excellence in a school activity over the term.

In particular I take this opportunity to congratulate Amy Lightbody in Year 10 on her selection on the Lord Mayor’s Brisbane City Youth Council, and our school debating teams on their continued success.

Best wishes for a safe and relaxing two week Easter break.

John Brew, Principal
Email: admin@centenaryshs.eq.edu.au

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Newsletter Articles

DEPUTY PRINCIPAL

News from the Deputy Principals

Mid Semester 1 Interim Reports and Parent-Teacher Interviews

All Mid Semester 1 Interim Reports will be emailed to parents and carers by the end of Week 10, Term 1. These reports provide a guide to how students are progressing at this stage. It is a good opportunity for parents and carers to check the progress of their children and to organise a time to meet with their children’s teachers at the Parent-Teacher Interview evening.

We will be using the PTO system which is accessible through our school website for parents/carers to make an interview time. The PTO booking system will be open for parents/carers over the school holidays and information has been sent previously about how to use this system. This information is also located on our school website. We would encourage all parents/carers to take the opportunity to meet the teachers, as research clearly shows that students’ learning and outcomes are enhanced when there is a joint effort between teachers, parents/carers and students. The Parent-Teacher Interview Nights are on Thursday 19 April and Monday 23 April.

As email communication has become so vital, can you please ensure your contact details are up to date and if your email address changes can you please notify the school administration. Also it is important to ensure that your email system does not treat emails from the school as junk or spam as this can prevent important information from reaching you. To ensure that this does not happen, please add the following email address to your list of safe senders: OneSchool.application@dete.qld.gov.au

Attendance is important in the last week of term

As we reach the end of Term 1, parents/carers are reminded that children must attend school on every school day unless they have a reasonable excuse for being away, such as illness.

Visiting family, being tired, or starting holidays early are not good reasons to be away from school.

A set routine can help students be successful at school everyday.

Help them develop good habits by ensuring they:

• have set hours during the week for going to bed and waking up each day
• organise their uniform and school bag the night before
• regularly eat breakfast at the same time each day
• set a time for daily homework activities

More information on the importance of regular school attendance is available below:

Senior School Assessment Policy

As students progress through to Year 11 and Year 12, there are a number of guidelines and policies that are outlined by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) to ensure equity and comparability across schools and subjects.

The school has developed procedures from the QCAA. These outline key processes regarding:

• Drafting and assignment submission
• Absence from Examinations
• Application for an Extension
• Accessing Special Provisions
• Incomplete assessment items, non-submission and academic misconduct

Students have been made aware of these policies through their HG programme and have the ability to refer to them in their Senior School Diary (pp. 131 – 134). It is important that parents/carers also familiarise themselves with this document as it applies across all Learning Pathways in Senior.

NAPLAN

A reminder that all Years 7 and 9 students will sit the NAPLAN tests in Week 5 of next term, Tuesday 15 May to Thursday 17 May. It is very important that all students attend every day and participate to the best of their ability. The results gained through the NAPLAN testing protocol provide our school with essential information about the delivery of our curriculum programs and as such we need accurate results for all students.

Year 9 Junior Certificate of Education (JCE)

This year we are introducing a new initiative where all graduating Year 9 students will have an opportunity to attain a Junior Certificate of Education (JCE). In order to receive a JCE, students must demonstrate a satisfactory level of academic attainment. The JCE represents a student’s successful graduation and transition from the junior school into the senior school and also replicates similar processes which occur at the end of Year 12. The criteria for the JCE are as follows:

1. JCE Honours – ‘A’ result received for all subjects
2. JCE – need to achieve a ‘C’ result or better in at least 5 subjects
3. Statement of Attainment – any student who does not receive a JCE

The JCE Honours, JCE or Statement of Attainment will be presented to all students at a special Transition Ceremony at the end of the year.

Student Drivers

Students who wish to drive their cars to and from school must complete and return a “Student Driver Application” form available from the Administration Office. Approval will be given when the school has received parent/carer approval and students agree to comply with the road and safety rules.

The following guidelines apply to all student drivers to ensure the safety of all members of our school community:

• Passengers may only be carried if all parents/carers involved give written approval
• Cars must only be parked in the public car park area on Yallambee Road. Considerable negotiation has occurred with our neighbours, Police and local government to keep the surrounding streets clear of parked vehicles. We expect students to be considerate of our neighbours’ concerns
• At no time during school hours are students allowed to go to or drive their vehicles unless school permission has been given
• Students may not drive their vehicles to a school excursion or activity

If you have any questions about this process, please do not hesitate to call the school.

Matt McDonald, Deputy Principal (Year 11)
Email: mmcdo156@eq.edu.au

Adam Richter, Deputy Principal (Years 9, 12 & International)
Email: arich60@eq.edu.au

Sallyann Griffith, Deputy Principal (Years 7, 8, International & Exchange)
Email: sgrif88@eq.edu.au

Kelsey Oakes, Deputy Principal (Year 10, ATSI & EALD)
Email: koake10@eq.edu.au

INTERNATIONAL

Visitors from Japan at Centenary SHS

For the past two weeks 22 students from Jinai Joshi Girl’s High School in Japan have been involved in a Science Study Tour based at our school. Their first aim was to prepare themselves fully for the daunting task of presenting their scientific research completed in Japan, through an oral presentation, to our Year 10 students! The students completed this challenge admirably in their second language, thanks in part, to their specialist English lessons with Ms Croker and Ms Power.

The group also wished to be immersed in experiencing Science in Australia – in our Science classes, through visits to both the University of Queensland and Griffith University and to an Environmental Education Centre on Moreton Bay. On another visit to the Planetarium our Year 10 buddies were able to accompany our visitors for an afternoon of astronomy, exploring the gardens and just getting to know fellow teenagers. The Farewell Party was enjoyed by all as Centenary SHS students and Jinai Joshi students performed ‘Nutbush City Limits’ together – quite a bonding experience. The students also enjoyed much of Australian life through their homestay experiences organised by Maria Chadburn.

Thanks to the Science Faculty who hosted this visit, hosting many visiting students in their classes.

Sallyann Griffith, Deputy Principal (Years 7, 8, International & Exchange)
Email: sgrif88@eq.edu.au

BUSINESS MANAGER

News from the Business Manager

Statements

Next week you will receive a “Debtor Statement” for school fees, either by email or post. This statement is an overview of previous single invoices that have already been forwarded.

Please note that no action is required for a credit adjustment, this will appear as a negative amount on a statement. If you have not received a statement this indicates that there are no outstanding fees.

All fees relating to the 2018 calendar year are due by 31 July 2018. An overview of all fees and charges can be located on our website below. These documents provide a detailed explanation (by subject) of Curriculum Charges and Student Resource Scheme fees and what the school provides for each of these charges.

Please note that some subjects are only timetabled each term or semester. For these subjects, invoices will be generated as required with an email advising parents/carers of the fee. For invoices generated after the due date, a 30 day account will operate.

For more detailed information please contact the individual Head of Department or Business Manager by emailing admin@centenaryshs.eq.edu.au.

How to make a payment

Payments can be made over the counter by cash or EFTPOS (Debit Card, MasterCard or Visa), by BPOINT or QParents. BPOINT and QParents options allow parents/carers the convenience of making payments from home and alleviates the need to pay over the counter transactions in person. For more information about QParents, please refer to the school’s website.

BPOINT Option

BPOINT is an online payment system and is the preferred payment method for the Department.

This option is accessed through an internet weblink below which appears on all invoices and statements. This link can also be located in the Quicklinks section of our school’s website homepage. You will need the Customer Reference Number (CRN) which is printed on the bottom of your invoice/statement before payment can be processed.

When accessing the BPOINT weblink on individual invoices all relevant information will prepopulate. Parents/Carers will only be required to enter their credit or debit card details.

INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE (IVR) BPOINT is also available by dialling the 1300 number provided on individual invoices. This option will only accept credit cards.

ELECTRONIC DIRECT DEBIT REGISTRATION (eDDR) BPOINT is the approved payment plan option. To set up a payment plan parents/carers are required to contact the school office first.

For more information on BPOINT please refer to the school’s website.

PHONE OR OVER THE COUNTER payments Options

Payments can be made at the school office, Monday to Friday between 8.00am and 4.00pm. Payment options include credit and debit cards (EFTPOS), cheque and cash. Money orders are also accepted.

For payments over the phone, call the school on 3373 4555, Monday to Friday between 8.00am and 4.00pm and we will transfer you to the IVR BPOINT 1300 dedicated phone number. Only VISA or MasterCard can be used for this process. From 2018 schools are no longer able to accept credit card payments over the phone.

Changes to the Payment of Excursions

This year excursions/camps/activities will no longer be included in payment plans. These are a user pay activity and will need to be paid in full prior to attending the event.

Parent/Carer Experiencing Financial Difficulties

A parent/carer wishing to participate in the Student Resource Scheme and experiencing financial hardship is encouraged to contact the Business Manager to discuss how their financial obligations can be met throughout the school year, or to negotiate alternative arrangements that may be available to accommodate their individual circumstances. All discussions will be held in the strictest confidence.

Parent/Carer Contact Details

Parent/Carer contact details are very important to us. Up to date and current school records enable us to send you messages, contact you if your student becomes ill or if there is an issue that needs resolving.

Our process for sending home report cards and other correspondence is now by email. By keeping your email address current we can keep you updated and informed.

If you have moved or are moving house, changed jobs, emails or mobile phone numbers, please inform the school office via email to admin@centenaryshs.eq.edu.au.

If you wish to receive the school’s newsletter, please go to our school website’s Newsletter tab to subscribe, or go directly to the link below. You will need to complete and submit the ‘subscribe’ form on the website.

Charmaine Macaulay, Business Manager
Email: cmaca5@eq.edu.au

STUDENT LEADERSHIP COORDINATOR

News from the Student Leadership Coordinator

Harmony Day

On Monday 19 March we celebrated Harmony Day – a day to celebrate Australia’s cultural diversity. It’s about respect, inclusivity and a sense of belonging for everyone. Harmony Day is always a big day on our Forum calendar and this year our Year 9 leaders, Nam-Chi Dang and Annika Melkersson, were in charge of running our events. They organised a Free Dress Day, with orange as the theme colour, to raise money for Ipswich Community Youth Services. This organisation provides vital services to young people in Ipswich and the surrounding communities, including students in our school community. The Forum also organised activities for the day, as well as creating a video leading up to the event, to involve all the students in our school. We also ran a poster competition with the theme ‘Everyone Belongs’. We had so many outstanding entries but the winner of this competition, and the proud winner of a $50 Event Cinema voucher, is Year 9 student Mandy Dam.

We also welcomed our Year 7 leaders – Holly Lightbody, Anoria Rankin, Brady Peut and Ewan Griffin at our Junior Leadership Investiture Ceremony. We can’t wait to officially meet them this week in our Leadership Forum Meeting!

Our next major project will be Multicultural Week. We want this event to be the showcase of the year, so planning is already underway. We welcome anyone in our community who would like to be involved in this celebration of cultures. If you would like to assist in any way, please contact me via email: ctuto3@eq.edu.au

Claire Tuton, Student Leadership Coordinator
Email: ctuto3@eq.edu.au

DIVERSE LEARNING DEPARTMENT

News from the DLD

Student Achievement

Jamie Booth is a student in Year 12. She has been at the school since Year 8 and is a valued member of our school community, winning the prize for IDMT and a silver academic award last year. Jamie has a physical impairment and is a wheelchair user. Jamie has always enjoyed swimming and started competing competitively in swimming last year. Jamie competes in the 50 metre backstroke.

In 2017 Jamie broke the state record for the 50 metre backstroke in her category (S3).

Currently Jamie trains four times a week and has her sights set on the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo. Last week, Jamie’s sporting achievements were recognised in a special presentation by the Head of Department HPE, Mr Lachlan Gibbs, at a full school assembly.

This week Jamie was also the recipient of a laptop and a specially designed keyboard from the Lions Club of Moggill and Mount Crosby. A special presentation was held in her honour with a morning tea for the Lions Club representatives, Jamie’s family, Mr Richter, teachers and class members.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)

Deborah McIntyre, HOSES
Email: dmcin49@eq.edu.au

GUIDANCE

News from the Guidance Officers

Juanita Oberle, Guidance Officer
Email: jober13@eq.edu.au

Janet Ingram, Guidance Officer
Email: jingr34@eq.edu.au

CHAPLAIN

News from the Chaplain

Food for Thought

Over the years I have spoken with several students, staff members and parents/carers who have had to face the very frightening situation of being diagnosed with a life threatening illness.

How do you think you would cope if you had to face a similar crisis?

At first you might feel bitter and even angry, but once the initial feelings of shock have passed, there is a good chance that you would discover an inner strength that you never knew existed, as well as a greatly increased awareness of what really matters in life.

You might have heard of people who have gone through this type of situation and who have actually come to a point where they have admitted that a part of them is almost glad that they went through this trial because it taught them to not take life for granted, the way they used to do.

Isn’t it a sad fact that some of us have to face the possibility of losing our lives before we actually start to appreciate the many good aspects that our lives are filled with?

Please don’t take your life for granted. Take the time to consider the blessings that your days are filled with. If there are people in your life that mean a lot to you, then let them know that and treat them well. If there are problems in your life that need fixing, make an effort to sort out those difficulties, instead of just allowing them to continue. Look after your health and treat your body wisely. Take control of the quality of your life and enjoy it to the fullest.

A message from Chappy Bernie

Cyberbullying – teach kids to be resilient

Research is showing that bullying usually starts face-to-face and then it morphs to an online form. So, if you’re talking to a young person, here are my 7 tips for helping them to rise above the poor behaviour of others in real life or online:

1. Tell them to ‘self-talk’ themselves – both sternly and strongly – that only people close to you matter. Someone once told me that in life many people will hold views about you and some of those views will be ill-founded. Only worry about what your family and close friends think about you, the others do not know who you really are, and their views are less important.
2. Report the bullies. The more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle an authority has (e.g. a school leader) the more they can see a pattern, which they can use in holding a tough conversation with a bully.
3. Disconnect – just ‘stop’ using your device for a while – and give yourself time to work out what to do. It’s tempting to go into a tizz when you first feel insulted by someone, but part of becoming more mature is knowing when and ‘how’ to give a proportional response – including when to stop worrying about things that have no easy solution. You can’t control other people, but you can control what you do.
4. Sleep well – and even meditate. Sleep for 8.5 hours per night (minimum) if you’re a teenager – and learn to meditate.
5. Don’t confuse people’s ‘right’ to complain or disagree with you as abuse or as an affront; they’re not the same thing as bullying. Ask your teenager to tell you what happened and give them feedback. For example, someone looking at you the wrong way is not bullying. It may be unpleasant but it’s not that bad.
6. Encourage your child to build an army of allies. Being a bystander is being complicit to bullying but being part of a bigger network, who refuse to allow bullying to occur and report it as a team, is empowering.
7. Embrace social media, positively. Know how to block, mute and report trolls and hate speech. Digital abstinence is unrealistic, managing a ‘friendship’ network, so allies are central, is key to using social media to be…social.

Thanks for your support.

Bernie McMullen, Chaplain
Email: bmcmu27@eq.edu.au

SPORTS DIRECTOR

Sports Director Report

Sports Gala Day

Just a few reminders regarding a student’s participation in either the junior or senior sports gala day. It is a privilege to represent Centenary SHS. You have to earn that privilege through good standing. You must ensure the following:

1. Arrive at school on time
2. You are in the correct school uniform
3. You attend any detentions given to you

Failure to comply with Centenary SHS rules will result in you being removed from a gala day team. Centenary SHS can only send students to a sports gala day that have demonstrated that they are reliable and can follow the school rules. I updated students in Weeks 8 and 9 of those who are unable to attend gala day. Make sure you are doing the right thing if you want to secure your spot in a team! It is a strictly no pay = no play. No payment plans will be accepted and payment must be made by the due date.

Our school has entered teams in Touch, Volleyball, Open Boys Cricket and Basketball. Good luck to all students and thank you to the coaches for all your hard work in training your teams. The Years 7, 8 and 9 gala day was in Week 10 on Wednesday 28 March. The Year 10 and Open Gala day is in Week 2, Term 2 on Friday 27 April.

Northern District Trials

A reminder that all information regarding district trials from 10-19 years is on the sports noticeboard. Dates are also on the sports calendar that is on the school website. Students must collect paperwork from Mrs Nasalio if they wish to attend trials.

Mrs Nasalio is having a few teething problems with Northern District Teams. Students from Centenary SHS have been selected onto a Northern District Team and have then decided they do not want to attend. Unfortunately this reflects badly on Centenary SHS as the Northern District are then short of players at the Regional Trials and a student from our school has taken a position that could have been offered to another student.

If a student does not intend to go to the Regional Trial then please do not waste Mrs Nasalio and the District’s time by collecting forms and trialling. Once selected on a Northern District Team you must honour this commitment or see Mrs Nasalio in advance so the District is not disadvantaged.

Cross Country Training

Centenary SHS annual Cross Country was held on Tuesday 26 March in Week 10. Training is still being held on Monday and Friday mornings as well as after school on Wednesdays.

Please be aware that even if it is raining training will still go ahead but will be moved into the school gym. Students are welcome to attend any of these three sessions and are not required to notify staff of their attendance in advance.

Students in Years 7, 8 and 9 participated in the either the competitive race or the fun run. Students in Years 10, 11 and 12 nominated to participate. Those who did not nominate went to class.

Met West

Many students from Centenary SHS have been attending District Trials and Regional Trials in order to be selected in the Met West team. Thank you to all of the parents/carers who have been involved in this process and have been transporting students to and from the trials. Due to the commitment of both parents/carers and students, Centenary SHS is having a very successful year with numerous students being selected to represent Met West.

Three of our students were selected to represent Met West in the Open Boys Touch Football team. Congratulations to:

Isaac Masoe
Jake Knight
Chicago Subritzsky

Congratulations to Zac Ashton-Norton and Keegen Bezuidenhout on being selected in the Open Boys Hockey Team.

Good luck to these boys at the State Championships.

Tamara Nasalio, Sports Director
Email: tnasa1@eq.edu.au

STEP

News from STEP

The Term 1 STEP program has come to an end. A group of students who have always wanted to learn the piano, but never found the time, has joined Mrs Sleeman in Music Appreciation. These students have all chosen a piece of piano music that they wanted to learn or improve. They spend some time practising some technical work (scales), piano technique and the learning of the piano repertoire. Although it is only a short time in our STEP program, students have performed for the class during the term to demonstrate their progress. They also did a final performance in Week 10 to showcase what they have achieved.

On the other hand, Ms George is busy preparing our Years 8 and 10 debating teams for the upcoming rounds of the Queensland Debating Union Competition. There is a lot of researching and analysing of controversial topics being undertaken. Both teams are creating their arguments and practising their rebuttals. Students demonstrate their ability and critical attitude to integrate knowledge into the discussion of the debate topic. Their confidence is built up in public speaking and they learn how to critique and analyse information while forming their own opinions. No doubt debate is quite competitive, however it is more impressive to see their drive and the support given to each other in becoming a seamless unit.

Create It is another popular STEP activity. Ms Ace is teaching a group of students to create a mini bean bag that is designed to hold an iPad or phone while they are studying on a couch or relaxing on their bed. Students are required to use a range skills including numeracy and creativity in completing this project. Materials used in the construction are upcycled scraps, along with dyes and embellishments, assembled using the sewing machine. You can imagine how students operated the sewing machine gingerly at the beginning. In the next two weeks students will be filling their bag and adding their final touches.

The Term 2 STEP information letter will be emailed to Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 students and their parents/carers by the end of Week 10. It consists of a list of activities and sports. There will be paper copies available at our school office front desk for anyone who cannot access their email for this information. I strongly encourage students to consider two to three STEP activities they would like to do, in case a particular activity does not run due to insufficient numbers or it becoming full. Our enthusiastic teachers offer a variety of activities in sharing their interests or hobbies with students outside the normal classroom settings on this particular afternoon. Our Term 2 STEP sign on assembly will be held on the first Wednesday straight after the Easter holiday. There will be no changing throughout the whole term after the students have chosen their activity.

Happy Easter Holiday.

Sin Woon Thoo, STEP Coordinator
Email: sthoo2@eq.edu.au

LITERACY COORDINATOR

News from the Literacy Coach

Literacy Report

At Centenary SHS, our teachers have long engaged in focused training to constantly improve and innovate their methods of teaching in the classroom. One of our major school priorities is around “Writing to Learn”. The idea is that our students need explicit instruction in the high demands of writing across curriculum areas, as well as the fact that constant, extended writing in the classroom helps to reinforce learning of both content and the skills of effective writing.

At a recent Twilight professional development, our staff were led through the theories behind explicit vocabulary instruction. We particularly focussed on Marzano’s Six-Step Process for teaching new vocabulary, which reinforces the idea that students are skilled in using a range of vocabulary with more precision if they are exposed to a range of activities that use those words. This means going far beyond only copying glossaries into the backs of our books.

In addition, teachers at Centenary SHS want to improve what kind of vocabulary our students are confident in using in extended writing. One of our goals is precision in writing! We’ve started to explore the 3 Tiers of Vocabulary. Tier 1 consists of the most basic words. Tier 2 consists of high frequency words that occur across a variety of domains (e.g. “crescendo”). Tier 3 consists of low frequency words that are subject-specific (e.g. “sin, cos and tan”.) We’ve realised that we do well as teachers in working with Tier 3 words. However, we sometimes neglect to teach those Tier 2 words which often cover the academic language we expect to see our students using, but which they are not yet proficient in using independently.

We have lots to focus on, and many teachers have picked up ideas for some engaging vocabulary games to use in their classroom.

For more reading, including resources you and your child can use at home, please visit:

Danielle Ringrose, Literacy Coach
Email: dring3@eq.edu.au

COORDINATOR A&TSI SUPPORT

News from our A&TSI Coordinator

On Wednesday 21 March, I was very pleased to accompany five of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students who are participating in the Solid Pathways Program to the University of Queensland. Five of our nine eligible students attended the excursion, which rewarded their high achievement and gave them a taster of what university life and a range of study areas are like.

“I enjoyed the activities that allowed the students to interact and think critically to achieve an answer. I enjoyed the Law activity, where we had to “remove” two human rights and argue why they wouldn’t be necessary.” (Kaiya Angus-Broadwater, Year 8)

“The activities that I enjoyed yesterday were the science activities where we had to do different experiments with different people learning different subjects. They also told us how the chemicals caused all types of different stuff. My most favourite thing in the science activity was making slime.” (Lizi, Year 7)

Angela Duncombe, Coordinator A&TSI Support
Email: adunc62@eq.edu.au

SENIOR SCHOOLING

Senior Schooling News

Year 12 QCS Parent Information Evening & Online Numeracy/Literacy Diagnostic Testing

Thank you to all parents/carers who attended the QCS Parent Information Evening on Tuesday 13 March. We hope that processes regarding the use of the Mighty Minds Portal to complete online Literacy and Numeracy testing was useful. For those parents/carers who could not attend, an information pack has been sent home explaining how your student can log on to the portal. The deadline for completing these tests is 3pm on April 16, the Student Free day. Completing these tests and undertaking practice tasks is mandatory for all OP-eligible students. The numerous resources provided on this portal, including the practice tasks and assessments, aim to improve specific areas of individual weakness.

QCS Writing Workshop Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 March

All OP-eligible students were asked to register for a QCS Writing Task session on Monday or Tuesday of Week 10. These sessions were conducted by Dr Ian Hunter from Write That Essay. It was mandatory that OP-eligible students undertook one of the 5 sessions offered. Students were to check carefully to ensure clashes did not occur with exams on Monday or Cross Country events on Tuesday.

QCS Numeracy Support (Thursdays at 3:30pm in RC)

A reminder also that QCS maths support is available every Thursday after school in the RC from 3:30pm onward. This service is provided to any student wishing to improve their understanding of mathematical concepts (Maths A, B & C students very welcome).

Year 12 OP-eligible Students: Wednesday 28 & Thursday 29 March

All OP-eligible students undertook a QCS Immersion program in the final two days of Term 1. All sessions were conducted in the upper level of the Humanities Block. Students were advised by letter and email to bring necessary equipment and materials used in QCS classes, along with protractor, ruler, compass and scientific calculator. We also suggested they bring a water bottle into the room.

Year 12 Transition Students: Wednesday 28 & Thursday 29 March

Students undertaking other pathways (including Tertiary Preparation) participated in a program designed to enhance career knowledge and workforce literacies. This included an excursion to USQ Springfield to learn about alternative tertiary entrance pathways and a visit Brisbane TAFE at Southbank. A bus took students to both locations. Other details including the wearing of full school uniform, bus departure and arrival times etc., were available from the letter sent home with students.

Please note also that those Year 12 students currently enrolled in the Transition Course may flex-off in Term 2. Permission to do so must come through the Year 12 Deputy Principal, Mr Adam Richter.

QCS Test – Special Provisions

Students sitting the QCS test who require ‘Special Provisions’ such as additional rest breaks, A3-sized test materials, use of a computer, alternative seating arrangements, etc., need to apply through the school before Friday 18 May. Students will be asked to consider if this applies to them and if so, consult with the Guidance Officer. If students have an emergency situation nearer the testing dates, for example an extended medical situation, they need to approach the school with medical documentation to allow for late special arrangements or exemption.

The website below, has general information about the types of special provision available, the application through schools process, and links to the 2018 Special Provision Handbook: Queensland Core Skills Test. If you have further questions, please email the Guidance Officer, Juanita Oberle (jober13@eq.edu.au).

Year 11 Processes

Year 11 students should have firmly established productive school and study routines. Those undertaking an OP Pathway should be undertaking at least 15 – 20 hours a week of study/homework/revision outside of school time. We strongly recommend that part time work be kept to a maximum of no more than 8 - 10 hours per week. The priority for all students, regardless of pathway, is attaining the best result they can in each subject. Remember, core business for all students is the attainment of the QCE and successful completion of their chosen pathway.

All Year 11 students have been actively working on the Certificate 2 in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways every Wednesday during STEP. Successful completion of this qualification will provide students with 4 credit points toward their QCE.

Year 10 Programs

Thank you to all families who attended the Year 10 Transition Talk on Tuesday 27 February. We have added the information delivered during the talk to the school website and emailed the slides home. This includes a copy of the Draft Curriculum Guide for 2019, Presentation PowerPoint and QCAA QCE Information Sheet. We look forward to meeting with you again in Terms 2 and 3 as we lead into Year 10 SET Planning.

All families should have received documentation regarding Year 10 Work Experience in Week 10 of Term 1. Form A (outlining placement details) is due back at school before Friday 11 May. If you require any further information, please contact myself or Jo Cunneen (Work Experience Officer) at jfirt18@eq.edu.au.

Communication

We endeavour to keep all parents/carers and students up-to-date with events occurring, and opportunities existing, in our Senior School. In the past we emailed home a copy of the “Options Career Information” bulletin every fortnight. Due to parent/carer feedback regarding the inconvenience of receiving emails, we have now moved to an online system for checking these bulletins. Please refer to them for current information regarding courses, university entry, traineeships, part-time job opportunities, career advice, open days and general information. Members of staff will continue to email home opportunities regarding individual programs as they come to hand. To access the online Options Career Information bulletins, please go to:

ACCESS CODE: cent2018

For further information, please feel free to contact a member of our Senior Schooling Faculty:

• Juanita Oberle (Years 10, 11 & 12 Guidance Officer)
• Angela Raven (Senior Schooling HOD)
• Adrian Homer (Transition Co-ordinator)

Angela Raven, Senior Schooling
Email: arave7@eq.edu.au

FACULTIES

ENGLISH

Lifting your results

With Term 1 ending, students in every year level have completed at least one assessment piece and have received results and feedback from their teachers. It is very important that all students consult with their teachers and make goals to improve throughout the year.

21st Century Skills

The philosopher René Descartes famously said “I think, therefore I am”. However, with the pressures placed on us every day by both mainstream and social media, how do we truly know what to think? In English we teach our students to be critical thinkers, building important skills to cope in the challenging 21st Century world. When we read items in the news and, more particularly, in social media, we should question and analyse what we are reading. We should ask ourselves questions like:

• Why has this been written?
• Who stands to gain?
• How does the author want me (the reader) to respond or react?
• What attitudes, values and beliefs are underpinning this text?
• How are my opinions being manipulated?

We should never just accept what we read: learning how to actively participate in and question texts helps us to separate the real from the fake. The best learners are thinkers.

Lions Youth of the Year

On Tuesday 20 February, our two School Captains, Nina Sarapa and Joshua Hansberry, and Vice-captain Liam Sands, participated in the Jindalee Lions Club Youth of the Year Quest final, competing against each other and students from a private school in our district.

The Lions Youth of the Year Quest is judged in two stages: firstly, entrants in the quest are required to attend a private interview with the panel of judges, during which they are judged on their leadership, sporting and/or cultural activities, citizenship and community involvement, academic record, general knowledge and personality. The interviews took place on Saturday 17 February. In the interview the students were asked questions about their involvement in school and the community, along with topics of local, national and international importance.

On the finals evening, students in the quest delivered a prepared speech of five minutes duration to the audience, and two short impromptu speeches. They are given no time to prepare for their impromptu responses, which is an enormously challenging task. The questions asked of the entrants on this occasion were: “What are your thoughts on banning students’ smart phones at school?” and “You are the Premier of Queensland. Tell us how you are going to promote Queensland to blockbuster moviemakers.” Our students did a fantastic job, responding to these questions with maturity, intelligence and humour. Their prepared speeches were inspirational and entertaining.

Congratulations to our Centenary SHS entrants. I am delighted to report that Joshua was the overall winner of this round and also took out the public speaking prize. He then participated in the zone final of the competition on Saturday 3 March, but was narrowly defeated.

Debating

I am very excited by the interest that is developing in public speaking here are Centenary SHS. This year we have four teams in the Queensland Debating Union competition so far - Years 8, 10, 11 and 12 – which have all participated in their first round. While the Year 12 team is the only team of the four to have had a win so far (our victorious seniors below), all the students have gained valuable experience in their debates. Thank you to my debating coaches Ms Hyndman, Ms Gummow, Mr Levey and Ms George for their effort and inspiration.

Write that Essay

Centenary State High School has embarked on a journey to improve our writing skills by working in partnership with Dr Ian Hunter, and his Write that Essay program. A number of staff have engaged in professional development with Dr Hunter, who has challenged us to improve our own writing so that we might better support our students – an exercise which we all found very confronting! These excellent writing strategies are beginning to filter down into classrooms, with a particular focus on Years 7 and 10 through our writing mentors Ms Elliot and Ms Barker. As an extra treat, last Tuesday Dr Hunter spent some time in classrooms interacting with students directly.

“My ENG071J class had the privilege and the pleasure of Dr Ian Hunter visiting our class last Tuesday. Ian introduced a new sentence style to the students, the ‘ED’ sentence, then spent the remainder of the lesson time engaging the students with using all of the new sentence styles they have learnt this term. The students had a truly fun learning experience where they worked in teams to create the best six-sentence story in response to some pictures! The competition was quite fierce! What was fantastic to see was that even the most reluctant writers in the class had an enjoyable writing session. Even better – I am seeing the different sentence styles coming through in the students’ assessment pieces.” (Ms McKay)

“Generally, my writing resembles that of a particularly smart 4th grader. However, participation in an engaging class by Dr Ian Hunter changed that considerably. I was able to learn and practice a series of simple yet effective writing tricks, and develop a powerful arsenal of sentence types. Some of these I had never heard of, such as the "Em-dash" sentence. This is particularly useful in commanding attention and keeping a reader engaged, even throughout that cumbersome 1000 word analytical essay. These tips gave me considerable insight into my own writing, and how to avoid being so stuffy, stale and spiritless. There is no doubt I will employ Dr Hunter's tips to improve my writing throughout Year 12 and beyond.” (Ben Turner, Year 12)

“Dr Ian Hunter's teaching methods were very engaging and definitely kept the class on their toes. We were taught techniques that were quite 'Shelley-like', such as the inclusion of a conjunction following a semi-colon. The use of the em-dash, and specifically how Shelley used it, was made particularly clear to the class. These techniques will most definitely help improve my creative writing piece!” (Lilian Robles Cao, Year 12)

Angela Maguire, English HOD
Email: amagu7@eq.edu.au

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Ten Pin Bowling

This year Centenary SHS are hoping to get their first ever ten pin bowling team together to enter the inter school team challenge. We are looking for boys and girls who can play Ten Pin. You don’t have to be perfect, just no bumpers! The interschool challenge is on August 12 at a venue to be advised. Jamie Robinson from Year 11 is a big Ten Pin Bowler and this year will be representing not only his local club but also Queensland in many tournaments around Australia. He will be able to coach and help students to get very good and will be the team captain. Training will occur at AMF Richlands on Thursday afternoons. If you are interested please see Mrs Nasalio for further information.

Lachie Gibbs, HPE A/HOD
Email: lgibb23@eq.edu.au

THE ARTS

Term 1 is almost over – how time flies! It has been another busy and productive term of teaching, learning and extra curricula activities. Over the holidays, please take the time to talk to your children about their first term of learning – ask them what they achieved over the term, what new skills they have learnt, and what their learning goals are for Term 2. It is important that every student knows what he or she needs to work on to be able to achieve to their potential! Please take the opportunity to meet with class teachers early in Term 2 at the parent teacher interviews to find out more about your child’s progress.

Congratulations to the Vocal Ensemble who have progressed to the Creative Generation Voices state final in April! Creative Generation Voices celebrates talented Queensland state school students who excel musically. The Centenary SHS Vocal Ensemble has been provided the opportunity to participate in an intensive workshop prior to the final, with a variety of Brisbane industry professionals including singer/songwriter Emma Dean and world-renowned beat boxer Tom Thum. The final will be on Thursday April 19, at The Old Museum’s Concert Hall. Tickets are available on the Old Museum website below: We also wish good luck to a number of other students who have auditioned or applied for other parts of Creative Generation (drama and backstage).

Congratulations also go to two of our Year 7 Music Plus students who were successful in nominating for the State Honours Ensemble Program Middle School held at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. This program accepts students with outstanding music ability from across the state, to work with conductors and musicians of national and international acclaim. Congratulations to Christian Gordon and Brendan Knowles - we know you will represent Centenary SHS with pride!

Last week our junior musicians spent three days intensively preparing for our upcoming competitions and performances. The approximately 80 students workshopped repertoire with their conductors and were able to showcase the work they achieved to family and friends in a concert on the Friday evening. A music camp, or intensive music rehearsals, have a number of benefits, and I agree with the author of this article as to why music camps are important. The full article is available below:

Playing music is both physical and mental exercise: camp is chance for students to turn off all other distractions, focus on making music and exercise their brains. It has been proven that the intensive nature of music camp rehearsals helps with the long-term retention of information when repetitive practice takes place. Making music is creative: students get an opportunity to make new friends, learn the difference between good and great sounding music and have the opportunity to work on their own individual skills. Creating music is a collaborative process, there is no point in being able to play your part on your own if you can’t play it with everyone else at the same time – the notion of teamwork and working harmoniously is very important. If an ensemble is to sound great, everyone must come together to learn the music, practice and have the mental discipline required to perform at a high standard.

Following the camp, the String Ensemble performed for the Year 7 Investiture Ceremony, wowing the audience with their rendition of the ‘Can Can’.

Students studying Senior Music and Junior Performance Plus were offered the opportunity to go and see Aladdin last week at QPAC. All of the classes share a common unit of study related to Music of the Theatre, and seeing a live show provides the students with a real life experience to use as a model for the own performances and as a point of reference when analysing or evaluating music theatre. It was a fabulous learning opportunity!

Centenary SHS is privileged to have a number of supremely talented staff members, and the music faculty is no exception. Guitarist, Mr Tim Gaze, who works on Mondays teaching a number of students, is an industry professional who has enjoyed a long career as one of Australia’s pre-eminent guitar players/vocalists. He has had a diverse career in Australia and overseas, both recording and working live with artists Jimmy Barnes, Jon Lord (Deep Purple), Bob Daisley (Ozzie Osbourne, Rainbow, etc.), Russell Morris, Brian Cadd, Gyan, Stevie Wright, Rob Grosser, Renee Geyer, Doc Span, Peter Howe (Morning Of The Earth), and more recently with ‘The Fabulous Green Machine’, featuring Noosa mayor Bob Abbott, and Tim’s own bands, GGC Blues Experience, and The OUTRO. Through the years, Tim has been an influential member of several highly regarded Australian bands – Tamam Shud, Kahvas Jute, Ariel, Rose Tattoo, The Aussie Rebels and The Hoochie Coochie Men – as well as several bands featuring his own name.

If you’d like to learn guitar from Tim, there are a couple of vacancies in the guitar program. Please see Mr Watkins or myself in the CPAC staffroom if you’re interested.

The debut Alumni concert held recently was a superb display of graduate talent and was very well received by the audience. We thank sincerely all of the graduates who performed at the concert and the audience who attended. The money raised will go toward the purchase of new ensemble uniforms this year. Special thanks go to Ms Zoya Sarapa for her organisation of the concert and to Ms Alex Van den Broek for her role in putting the show together.

Coming up

There are a number of events and activities coming up in the next few weeks. Please check emails from staff advising information for events and ask your children for the notes we are sending home!

Arts Sub-committee meeting: Monday 16 April, 7pm

Years 11/12 Art and Art in Practice Gallery excursion: Tuesday 17 April (day one of Term 2)

Addams Family auditions: Wednesday 18 April 3-5pm (and Tuesday 17 April for students attending camp)

Senior instrumental music camp: Wednesday 18 April - Friday 20 April

Year 10 Art Galley excursion: Thursday 26 April

Finally this week, an article about why movement is important. The curriculum subjects of Dance and Drama offer students a wealth of skills for use after leaving school, from analysing, evaluating and critiquing, to the more practical side of the subjects. There are a number of benefits to studying these subjects, and movement is an obvious one - it is a natural part of everyday life. We get out of bed, get dressed, walk around, make a coffee, sit down, brush our teeth, do daily jobs - there is little thought required. But movement can be so much more!

For students, movement can build the foundations for an active life:

• understand how the body functions
• develop body confidence
• practise social interaction

For adults, movement can help maintain a balanced life:

• minimise stress
• stabilise body weight
• delay onset of disease and illness

For seniors, movement can minimise the effects of aging:

• enhance mobility
• prevent mental decline
• reduce impact of disease and illness

The benefits of movement speak for themselves. All we have to do is make a conscious decision to include movement in our life!

Angela Sleeman, The Arts HOD
Email: aslee4@eq.edu.au

YEAR LEVEL COORDINATORS

Year 12 Report

This Year 12 Report will be devoted to the 2018 FORMAL and MYSTERY TOUR. We want to give students and parents/carers plenty of notice because many of you will wish to hire suits/dresses, book hair/makeup, organise transport and make other assorted plans. Also, the expense of the events is not insignificant, so we’d like to inform you sooner rather than later.

The Formal will be held at HILLSTONE, ST LUCIA on Wednesday 14 November.

Arrivals start from 6pm. Traditionally, many students like to show up in a flashy car and then stroll down the red carpet linking the drop-off area to the entrance. We have had students arrive in sports cars, fire engines, humvees, motorcycle cavalcades and vintage roadsters. Dinner begins at 7pm. The package includes a three-course meal, non-alcoholic drinks, photo booth, DJ and security. The proceedings will be organised, in large part, by the Year 12 Council. The event concludes at 11pm.

For those attending the Mystery Tour, you will need to leave in time to get changed into casual clothes and get to school by 11:30pm for a midnight departure. We will return to school at around 9:30am on Thursday!

The Mystery Tour involves 4-5 coaches full of students and teachers travelling between a variety of venues in the early hours of the morning. It’s always a fun, active and pleasantly exhausting experience. (No, I can’t tell you where we’re going!)

At this stage, estimated costs for the events are $120 for the Formal and $130 for the Mystery Tour.

Students must be of “good standing” to participate. Students who have been suspended at any stage in 2018, or who have otherwise lost their good standing for behavioural issues, will only be permitted to attend at the discretion of the Principal and Deputy Principal.

There will be much more information released in Term 3, but this should be enough to let you know the basic shape of what we’re in for, and to start making the appropriate arrangements if you have any elaborate plans…

Thanks, as always, for your support, and please contact me if you have any issues or would just like to have a chat.

Terry Oberg, Year 12 Coordinator
Email: tober11@eq.edu.au

Year 10 Report

Term 2 is around the corner! Much of this term has been about building capabilities in our young people. This cohort never ceases to amaze us with the high calibre of leadership potential. This was in evidence last Monday at the special Investiture Assembly, where our Year 10 Mentors were officially presented with their badges and a certificate. We have 45 mentors in our cohort, with some doubling up as buddies for the Japanese visitors, as well as putting their hand up for the Year 10 Council! The Year 10 Council is an initiative, the aim of which is to provide practical experience for students, by supporting various projects over the year.

Their first activity was helping with “Clean-Up Australia Day”. Councillors gathered in the library, along with their counterparts from Years 8 & 9, to bundle up the gloves and bags needed to run the clean-up with over 1,000 volunteers. Even though it was rather hectic toward the end of the break, it was a social occasion with many students getting to know students from other year levels or HG classes for the first time. The actual clean-up was a great success with students enthusiastically gathering enough waste from the school grounds to fill the groundsman’s trailer. Students were shown a brief video and some information preceded this rather fun 15 minutes so they could relate to this very real issue in our community. Many thanks also to Years 7, 8 & 9.

Information about the SATE process will feature very strongly over the coming months and many thanks to those who were able to make it to last month’s Parent Information session. There will be many more over the course of the few next years, so please don’t be concerned if you couldn’t make it!

Work Placement is a big ticket item in Term 3. Please encourage your young person to return their completed FORM A to Jo Cunneen in HE10 as soon as possible. Leadership Camp is also in Week 3 of Term 3. Keep your eyes out also for emails regarding these two major events.

Parent Teacher Nights will be early next term on Thursday 19 and Monday 23 April. Please log on to PTO and make an appointment to speak with your child’s teachers. PTO opens on Tuesday 3 April at 9am for parents/carers to book interviews. On Tuesday 17 April, PTO closes for parents/carers at 11:55pm.

Please contact me or Kelsey Oakes, if you have concerns regarding the welfare of your student.

Debra Mansini, Year 10 Coordinator
Email: dmans17@eq.edu.au

Year 8 Report

It has been a busy term for the Year 8s. They have settled nicely into the daily routine of classes and schoolwork. We have had a number of different events that have occurred. Three weeks ago the students had the pleasure of watching the Shake’n’Stir performance ‘Unfiltered’. The show focused on the negative impact that social media can have on teenagers. It was a great performance and the students were all engaged. The performers commented after the show how impressed they were with how great our students were. Two weeks ago, the school held its annual Clean-Up Australia Day. Along with the Year 10s, 9s and 7s, the Year 8s were designated an area in the school and were responsible to clean that area. It was fantastic to see the enthusiasm the students displayed as they took on the task.

Earlier in the year, we selected the Year 8 leaders for 2018. It was a tough decision, as all the students who nominated did a fantastic job in their speeches and interviews. We have four outstanding leaders, who have already demonstrated outstanding leadership skills. Congratulations to Freya-Grace Hellmuth, Paris Limmer, Matthew Wilkinson and Matthew Welch.

As we wrap up our cyber safety unit for HG this term, a friendly reminder that all students need to have a separate exercise book for HG lessons.

Have a great holiday and we look forward to an even better Term 2.

Kate George, Year 8 Coordinator
Email: Kgeor38@eq.edu.au

P&C

News from our P&C

The P&C’s Annual General Meeting was held on Wednesday 21 March and was immediately followed by the March General Meeting. Many thanks to all those who attended. It was great to see so many new members on the night and we welcome them to the P&C.

The incumbent Executive was returned for another year as follows:

President: David Harris
Vice President: Roger Bacon
Treasurer: Jennifer Peters
Secretary: Susan Harris

Below are the President’s reports for both the AGM and the General Meeting.

President’s report for AGM – 21 March 2018

The primary objective of the P&C is to support the school in whatever way we can to help improve the educational outcomes of the students. This support can take many forms including provision of musical, sporting and other equipment, as well as assisting in making the school environment conducive to maximum learning opportunities.

2017 was, once again, a busy time for the P&C and I am pleased to report on the association’s achievements during the year. These include:

• Contribution of $20,000 toward the school air-conditioning project along with a further commitment of $40,000 which is to be paid this week
• Successful application for a grant from the Community Gambling Fund for the redevelopment of the school’s long-jump pit. This grant was $22,000 and work is currently underway
• Ongoing support and funding for the school Chaplaincy program
• Arts Sub-Committee, led by Sara Townsend, again excelled in raising funds for the school Arts Department
• Music Scholarships for Year 7 students funded through the Arts Sub-Committee
• Supporting the Arts Department with purchases of two pianos – one with the very generous support of one of our parents – Rod Passos who contributed $2,500 – a little over half the purchase price of one of the pianos. Thank you Rod.
• Information stall at Open Day and presentation at the Year 7 information nights
• It was a heavy year for maintenance in the Canteen with several items of equipment being replaced
• Provision of lunch for all Year 12 students sitting the QCS tests – a huge task undertaken by our canteen staff and funded by the P&C
• Brisbane Bands Festival Catering – through the Arts Sub-Committee – a great fund raiser for that committee
• Administration of the Student Support Fund to help some of our disadvantaged students. We have been able to help many students through this fund
• Another successful Trivia Night – a very important Student Support fundraiser with the support of over 40 of our local businesses

Our two not-for-profit businesses, the canteen and uniform shop, are the major contributors to our ability to fund most of our activities. The P&C employs six permanent part-time and casual staff who run these businesses for us. I’d like to extend my thanks to Cheryl, Antionette, Jenelle, Maryanne, Jodie and Sean in the canteen and uniform shop and for their tireless efforts in making these ventures the successes they are.

I would like to thank John, Charmaine and all the school staff, our Arts Sub-Committee led by Sarah, Kerrie, our grants officer and Roger, Jennifer and Susan, our executive committee. Thanks also to Roger for all the work he has done toward the long-awaited canteen upgrade. I’m sure we’ll see major progress this coming year.

Thanks also to Jenny and Kara who administered our Facebook page and to all our P&C members that have supported us this year. We really appreciate your input as we couldn’t do this job without you.

We are grateful to those parents/carers who have made annual contributions via our P&C Levy. We appreciate your contributions which went to support the school’s air-conditioning project.

I would like to thank our bookkeeper Glenda James who does an excellent job maintaining our financial records.

Finally, thank you to the various community organisations that have provided financial assistance to Bernie and his Chaplaincy breakfasts, QCS lunch and other events throughout the year.

I move that my report be accepted.

President’s Report March 2018

P&C Meeting Wednesday 21/03/2018

Thank you for your confidence in returning the Executive for another year.

The balance of this year promises to be very busy with several projects underway and to be planned. If everyone gives just a little bit I’m sure we can achieve our goals.

Most significant of our projects are:

• Canteen Upgrade – Roger’s mandate is to advance this project to completion by the end of this year. Roger has worked hard on this project and has certainly been thrown a few curve balls. He will report in more detail shortly.
• Trivia night – we need to set a date and start planning for this. In recognising the importance of this event for fundraising for the Student Support Fund I’d like to set up a sub-committee specifically for this purpose. Please consider if you’d like to become a part of this committee as we cannot continue to leave it to just the few ‘regulars’. If we can’t get sufficient support for the event its future will be in doubt along with the roughly $4,500 it raises each year.

We are currently seeing increased demand for assistance from this fund indicating that growing pockets of our community are experiencing financial stress so I cannot emphasise enough the importance of this event in ensuring that these students are given the best opportunities.

• Annual Voluntary Parent/Carer Donations. Last year’s purpose was for the air-conditioning project. Given that, with the current installations to take place over the coming school break, most (if not all) rooms capable of having air-conditioning installed will have been done, we may need to investigate an alternative need to ask parents/carers to contribute to. If it’s ok with John Brew, I’ll meet with him in the coming weeks and report back at the next meeting.

I move that this report be accepted.

David Harris, P&C President Centenary SHS
Email: pandc@centenaryshs.eq.edu.au

COMMUNITY NOTICES

Bellbowrie “Strikers” Hockey Club

Fun family culture. Supportive learning environment. Development pathways into representative and senior grades.

Players of all ages (from 3 years) welcome.

Hook in2 Hockey (U5, U7 and U9s) - $85 for season includes stick, shin pads, ball

Junior teams train at Bellbowrie Sport and Rec fields. Games are played at Ipswich hockey grounds each weekend, generally Saturday morning.

Email: bhc.strikers@gmail.com

Scorpion Tennis